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WMNF's New Sounds of the Left Coast Artist Showcase about to debut!

New Sounds offers young artists in six counties the opportunity to attend workshops, play live at local venues, and record music in a professional-quality studio throughout Spring and Summer 2014. Both a competition and a chance to learn from successful musicians and promoters, News Sounds aims to connect Floridas young, diverse musical talent with professionals that can inspire and guide them.

Artists and bands can now submit one original song to the website, WMNFNewSounds.org, until April 26. Submissions are open to all music genres. After the submission period ends, a panel of WMNF programmers, local promoters, and music bloggers will go through the submissions to find the most promising talent in the Bay area. All artists who submit to participate in New Sounds will also be invited to a music business workshop, focusing on helping young bands move out of the garage and onto the main stage.

WMNF is known for nurturing new talent, and the New Sounds project intensifies that, says WMNFs General Manager, Dr. Sydney White. This helps us connect with the next generation of listeners in a meaningful way.

Bands selected as semi-finalists will perform at free showcases in Tampa, St. Pete, and Lakeland in May. Artists will be in front of new audiences, letting the public hear some of the best of what West Floridas music scene is growing.

From the live shows, finalists will be chosen to record original songs at WMNFs state of the art live music studio, simultaneously filming the recording process. These songs and videos will be released in late July, with voting open to the public for a say in the New Sounds of the Left Coast winner.

The winning band will play at WMNFs 35th anniversary concert in September, performing at the annual event that has historically featured Grammy award winning musical artists across many genres.

The competition is open to all local musicians, bands, and spoken word artists 17 to 26 years old. Original songs can be submitted at http://www.wmnfnewsounds.org until April 26.

There will be a workshop open to all submitters about how to be a successful band, aka, how to get your band out of the garage. The workshop will be at the WMNF studios on Sunday, April 27 from 1-4pm. Promoters, musicians, djs and others will talk with musicians about successful ways to get your music heard.